Bob

Where Bob comes from

Probably from a medieval hypocorism of Rob.
— Wiktionary's entry for Bob
  • 1 syllable
Along the way
  1. 1880
    First SSA year
    Already #244 among boys — 46 babies in the first year on record.
  2. 1903
    Bob Hope born
    American entertainer
  3. 1929
    Bob Newhart born
    American stand-up comedian and actor
  4. 1934
    Peak, #75
    2,478 babies named Bob — more than any year before or since.
  5. 1950
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births — down to #204.
In the dictionary
  • A diminutive of the male given name Robert.
Namesakes
  • Bob Hope · American entertainer, 1903–2003
  • Bob Newhart · American stand-up comedian and actor, 1929–2024
  • Bob Dole · American politician, 1923–2021
  • Bob Woodward · American investigative journalist, born 1943
  • Bob Beamon · American track and field athlete, born 1946

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.